Why do some people succeed and others fail? In this video and article I get into the 7 signs you are going to be successful.Great coaches, mentors, and CEOs are all very good at having a certain intuition where they know which player, talent, or future leader to bet on. There’s something about them. Somehow they know who’s going to be successful. They get credit for choosing and putting their money on the right people.Think about it. What if there was a technology for you to be able to tell that Arnold Schwarzenegger would become who he is today when he was only 14? How about Michael Jordan, Alexander the Great, Mohammad Reza Shah? What if you could figure it out ahead of time? Think about it. I mean, Mohammad Reza Shah was given Iran at the age of 21. Alexander the Great conquered two million square miles of the world. Can you tell ahead of time if somebody’s going to be successful?I’m here to tell you that there are seven signs that you’re going to be successful in life.#1: Super CompetitiveLet's start off with number one. Number one is that the people that are going to be successful in life are absolutely super competitive. It doesn't matter what it is. They have to do it faster, better, bigger than everyone else. Their one desire is, "I'm going to do it better than you."And in the world of capitalism, it's all about competition. Competition is what makes capitalism work. It's what makes sports work. Politicians that go to the top are typically the ones that are most competitive. They want to figure out a way to do things better.There's a first place person in every office, every team. Even if the team sucks, there's somebody that's the best on that team. Then you get a new cat that comes to town. Whether it's a work environment or a team, if the new guy's competitive, he puts the guy that's higher than him as a target. He wants to beat him. This impacts everything he does - diet, work ethic, the time he comes in - everything. Why? Because he's super competitive. And eventually, he'll pass the top guy up. It's simply how it is.#2: Finish Things

Next, people that are going to be successful like to finish things. Let me explain. When working a puzzle, they can't stop until they finish the puzzle. If they play a video game, they can't help themselves; they have to finish the game. When reading a book, they have to finish it.Guys, this is a sign. When I see people that only read the first chapter or two of a book and then ask the question, "Pat, what do you think, man? I have 30 books that I've started that I haven't finished." Well, that's a sign you don't like to finish things. You like things to be given to you easy. The people that finish things always finish things. And that's a sign they're going to be successful.#3: Circle Out-Earns ThemThe next sign that someone's going to be a success is that their circle out-earns them. The people they spend time with are bigger than them. It's a formula. It's not an accidental thing. That's why you'll notice that some of the people that don't achieve success always want to be around smaller people because it makes them feel bigger. The people you meet that are super successful, they always put themselves in situations where people are bigger than them. Why? Because it's the next platform, the next level they're getting to.#4: Mind Never StopsNext, one way you can tell that a person is going to be successful is that their mind never stops. #5: Credible People See You Going PlacesAnother sign that someone's going to be successful is how credible people view them. Let me explain. Let's say I meet John. And John's principal, football coach, uncle, and boss all say, "This guy's going places. He's going places." If those guys gave authentic, real answers, that cat's going places. Why? Because those people have spent endless hours with him. They know his flaws and habits. They know whether or not he finishes things if he spends time with people that are ahead of him, and how competitive he is. So if a lot of credible people say that someone's going places, that's a sign he'll be successful.#6: Always LearningThe next sign that someone's going to be successful is that they won't stop learning. They can't stop learning. They can't help themselves. There's a desire to get better at everything. So they want to be a better student and learn more.#7: Extremely ObsessiveAnd last but not least, the people that are going to be successful are extremely obsessive. If you could dissect the mind of an obsessive person, it would concern a lot of people. You might ask, "Does this person really think that way?" They do. They really do think that way. They're very good at getting what they want because they have to have it. They're obsessed with it. And anytime they're obsessed about it, they start figuring out creative ways to get what they want. Whether it's a girl, business, position, accolades, a certain place or lifestyle they want, they'll figure out a way to get it because they're obsessive. They're just wired that way, and they have to have it.So those are the seven signs that if you see, you can tell someone's going to be successful.By the way, there's no 100% to any of this. No one's ever going to be 100%. But you want to be at least 70 or 80%. Because if you do this right, the majority of the time you'll put together the most incredible team in your business so you'll grow and go to different places.The post is inspired by a video by Patrick Bet-David.If you think you possess these 7 qualities, join us in building one of India's finest tech products. And if you have any questions or thoughts on what was covered in today's article, please comment on the bottom.I am Aditya Ruia, an undergrad student at BITS Pilani, one of India's premier engineering institutions || CEO and Founder of Quorg, a messaging app for business communication, simply said, a Whatsapp for Professionals. Follow me on LinkedIn or drop a mail at hello@quorg.in Subscribe for product launch at quorg.in

Demand for big data expertise is growing every day, as more and more companies become aware of the benefits of collecting and analysing data. Unfortunately, the number of people trained to analyse this data isn’t growing in line with the demand. This creates a challenge for companies looking to hire expert people, especially for smaller firms less able to compete on salary and benefits.The good news is that, even if you’re having trouble recruiting data scientists because of stiff competition, or if you simply haven’t got the budget to recruit, you can still access big data skills. Hiring in-house staff isn’t the only way – let’s look at some of the best alternatives.Focus on attracting or developing certain skillsI believe there are six key skills required to work with big data: analytical skills, creativity, a knack for maths and statistics, computer science skills, business acumen, and communication skills. Rather than hiring people with these skills, you may be able to build on your existing skills in-house. For example, you may have an IT person who already covers the computer science side of things who would love the opportunity to learn about analytics. You could pair them up with a creative, strategic thinker who understands the business’s needs and you’re well on your way to having the skills you need without hiring anyone new.Nurture your existing talentDeveloping your existing people is a brilliant place to start, especially in smaller businesses or companies on a tight budget. Increasingly colleges and universities are putting courses online for free. Some of the courses offer certificates of completion or other forms of accreditation, some don’t. But the skills learned should be more important than a piece of paper.Excellent examples include the University of Washington’s Introduction to Data Science course, which is available online at Coursera (www.coursera.org/course/datasci), or Stanford’s Statistics One course, also available on Coursera (https://www.coursera.org/course/stats1). For those interested in the programming side of things, check out Codecademy’s Python course.Thinking outside the boxIt’s worth considering unusual sources where you might be able to recruit help, either on a permanent basis or on a temporary basis (such as getting help to analyse data for a one-off project). Universities with a data science department, or any kind of data institute for that matter, are a good place to start. You could offer an internship, taking on some students to help with an analysis project, or you could see if the university is open to a joint project of some kind. If you’ve got data to crunch, they may very well be up for crunching it! In return you could mentor students on the key skills needed to survive in business or offer interview training and practice.Thinking outside the box is really about finding creative ways to pull the necessary skills together in whichever way works for you. It may be easy to find someone with statistical and analytical skills but they may fall short on business insights or communication skills … but that needn’t be a problem if other staff could help supplement those skills.Also consider whether there’s an opportunity to create an industry group with other companies facing similar challenges to your own. Even if you’re not keen to share detailed data with these companies (they probably don’t want to with you either), you can still pool resources to get data analysis done on a large scale without necessarily sharing your private data. Remember that data can always be aggregated or anonymised to remove specifics that you don’t want shared.Harness the power of the crowdYou might consider crowdsourcing your big data project. Crowdsourcing is a way of using the power of a crowd to complete a task. (If you haven’t heard of crowdsourcing before, you’ve probably heard of crowdfunding platforms, like Kickstarter, which operate on a similar basis – using the power of a crowd to achieve a goal.)A few crowdsourcing platforms, like Kaggle, now allow thousands of data scientists to sign up for big data projects. A business can then upload the data they have, say what problem they need solving, and set a budget for the project. It’s a great option for companies with a small amount to spend, or those who want to test the waters. But it’s also a regular resource for big firms like Facebook and Google. Some firms are even known to recruit full-time analysts from crowdsourcing platforms if they’ve been blown away by the work they’ve done. This gives you an idea of the quality of talent on crowdsourcing platforms.Tapping into external service providersIf none of the above options work for you, you can still make the leap into big data. A great way to supplement missing skills, particularly when it comes to the statistical, analytical and computer science aspects, is to hire external providers to handle your data and analytics needs. There are more and more big data providers and contractors springing up who are able to source or capture data on your behalf and analyse it (or work with data you already have). Some big data providers are household names, like Facebook and IBM, but you certainly aren’t limited to big blue-chip companies. There are tons of smaller providers out there who have a great deal of experience working with small and medium-sized firms, or expert knowledge of specific sectors.As always, I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you for reading my post. Here at LinkedIn and at Forbes I regularly write about management, technology and Big Data. If you would like to read my future posts then please click 'Follow' and feel free to also connect via Twitter, Facebook, Slideshare, and The Advanced Performance Institute.Businesses of all shapes and sizes can access big data skills – and on almost any budget. My new book Big Data for Small Business For Dummies is packed with ideas and information on how to get started with big data, along with real-life examples from a wide range of sectors.You might also be interested in my new and free ebook on Big Data in Practice, which includes 3 Amazing use cases from NASA, Dominos Pizza and the NFL. You can download the ebook from here: Big Data in Practice eBook.

Co-written with Simon Howard of DRYVER.It seems to be that everywhere we look, there is a new title for a similar role. We’ve seen VP of HR, People and Culture, Happiness, and People. We’ve seen titles that have ‘Ninja’ in them, and organizations that are stripping titles as much as they can. Some organizations are expanding the role of HR faster than others, but one thing seems to be consistent: HR is changing, and the role is only getting more important.After various hackathons with leaders in the HR space, research on the subject, and experiences we’ve had through the work we are doing at DRYVER, it seems that in many cases, Human Resources is the Hermit Crab that has moved out of its smaller shell an into a much, much bigger one.Traditionally, the role of HR has, of course, been to look at recruiting, on-boarding, training, benefits, pay, holidays, conflicts, rewards in the workplace, and so on. And while these roles are no less important today, there are often additional responsibilities that many employees in the space have now. In some cases, we would go as far as saying that HR is moving to be included in a larger operations role, while still being focused on people.Diving in a little further, it became glaringly apparent that employee experience in the workplace is far more important than it was in the past. There is more accessibility to information than we’ve seen before, and as a result, there is more awareness as to where we can be working and why. In many cases, we no longer chase jobs just for the skills to do them, but for the experience at work and the life we are able to live as a result.And so how does HR play into this evolution of the workplace and how we communicate it?1. Organization DesignHaving HR be at the table for the creation of the organization design or structure is really important in ensuring that people have the resources available to do their best work possible. We’ve seen many articles and books (a great one being Flat Army by Dan Pontefract) that explain that a traditional structure may not be as effective as it once was.2. PurposeLet’s take an accountant working at a big firm, for an example, and compare it to an accountant working at a golf course, one who works in government, and another who does the books for a restaurant down the street. Though the jobs may be quite similar, how are we articulating the value of the job and the purpose behind it? Purpose is, and will continue to be a great differentiator between companies, especially when skills aren’t.3. Employee ExperiencePerhaps this isn’t as drastic of an evolution as the others, but as we see overall tenure decreasing the the workplace, and the need for a sense of community and belonging increase, there has to be more of an emphasis if we are to keep our best employees. Work has to be something that is bigger than just a 9-5 that we punch in and out of; it has to be an experience where we build community with people that share similar values, wants needs, and expectations.And so as we see the workplace evolves, and realize that people are the foundation of any business, the role of HR has to continue to expand. Understanding how we differentiate our companies from our competitors, in many cases, comes to the people and the experience on the job. HR is, of course, at the centre of this.So as you have likely noticed, a lot of the HR groups we work with really embrace their new roles within the respective organizations. Does this mean that the organization is evolving though? Not necessarily. The people in these roles are very good at what they do, but already have full time jobs. A primary reason people bring organizations like DRYVER in is often to help with implementation. Once created, it is easier for them to take the lead. *****If you’re interested in the work we’re doing, or want to subscribe to our articles, please click HERE!Follow Eric on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Check out his TEDx talk here. Also, check out The DRYVER Group for more information.

The all-important interview is spoken about as if it was a single, hour-long event and the sole deter-mining factor upon which jobs are offered. In reality, it is usually a series of interactions that occur over some period of time. In contrast to our private sector colleagues who might be hired by a single department head or hiring official, higher education tends to have multiple stakeholders participating in a series of screening events. Many professions also have the tradition of panel interviews-like search committees-but how and to what degree they use such panels varies significantly. Nonetheless, the all-important interview is usually plural instead of singular.

Interviews are consequential events for organizations since selection is tantamount to making an investment. Rightfully, institutions tend to hedge their bets on making good decisions, and multiple interviews or multiple interactions with candidates are a way to do just that. I advise, in Search Committees: A Comprehensive Guide for Faculty and Staff Searches, that organizations add multiple screening methods to increase the rigor of the selection process and as a method of reducing the potential margin of error. This task can be accomplished by using at least two of the more than a dozen types of interviews. The archetypical search committee, the one-on-one interview with the hiring official, telephone/video interviews, open fora, presentations, and airport interviews are but a few of the types of interviews cited. These do not include screening calls, second interviews, and other interactions with individuals from a future employer.

The first piece of advice for candidates is to assume that every interaction with anyone from an employer is a form of interview. In one of my first blog posts, I noted that everything that you say and do in the entire process will be used against you. If a candidate is rude to the human resources representative who calls to verify the information on their vitae; if they divulge that the college's location is not ideal over dinner; or if one expresses frustration with the university's investment in athletics in contrast to that in humanities - while completely true - still might insult some diehard fans, and all of these will hurt their chance of being offered a position. Second, since multiple screening events should be expected, one should attempt to learn as much about their number and type in advance. Third, one must prepare for all of the interviews and prepare for them appropriately - and differently.

One cannot assume that 'the' interview with the search committee is the only one that matters because it is the group that will make a recommendation. Any meeting with the hiring official matters; his or her opinion, when in conflict with a committee, will almost always rule the day. For administrative positions, candidates often meet with their future direct reports. While this group may not vote, they are often given veto power. If the appointing authority and the search committee likes a candidate but the entire department indicates that they could not work for a candidate because of things said during a meeting with them, it is unlikely the candidate will be hired. Lecture demonstrations and presentations are obvious interview events that one must prepare for fittingly. Town hall meetings or 'Q&A' sessions with an entire department are quasi-presentations that carry weight. Coffee time with the department might appear to be an informal collegial chat, but it is a test. Study, prepare, and cram as necessary.

Telephone and video interviews present their own unique challenges. The stakes are very high as they are hurdles to surmount on the way to a campus invite. Their format and shorter length favors the institution more than the candidate, so effort must be made to make a good impression-all things considered. Prepare, dress formally, utilize a good camera, pay attention to lighting, learn to use the technology in advance, and rehearse the interview with a friend are all guidelines for making a positive impression via Skype® or similar technology. To accommodate the context, speaking clearly, being concise, and making an extra effort to build rapport with the committee - despite the distance - is good advice.

The type of interview should give one some insight into how to prepare. Telephone interviews are big screening devices and questions are most often competency based-designed to determine if one can be successful in the job. Group meetings and open fora are probably occasions to see how one presents and engages with others. A meeting with a leader is probably used to tease out one's philosophy and style of working. That is, does the candidate like to play the game the way the leader likes to play the game? A mismatch is not good for either party. When thinking about how to prepare for any type of interview, lean on Aristotle's wisdom-"Know thy audience." A meeting with faculty senate leaders or future colleagues is different in the most subtle, but important, ways.

Getting 'the' job requires being prepared for multiple interviews, not just preparing to ace 'the' interview. Knowing the number and type of interactions that one will have with campus constituents is a prerequisite to success. Giving due credence to each interaction is a key word of caution as one is truly on stage and being watched carefully in every instance. Preparing for each by appreciating the audience and different modality is critically important.

by Christopher D. Lee, Ph.D., SPHR

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